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Peter Singer: "Famine, Affluence, and Morality" | Talks at Google

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Talks at Google was honoured to host the esteemed philosopher Peter Singer to discuss his seminal work Famine, Affluence, and Morality and what it means to live a moral life in a grossly unequal world.
Recorded in London, June 2016
You can follow Peter on Twitter - @PeterSinger
Originally published in 1972, “Famine, Affluence, and Morality” is one of the most widely discussed essays in applied ethics. He argues that we have the same moral obligations to those living far away as we do to those close to us - choosing not to send life saving money to starving people on the other side of the world is the moral equivalent of neglecting to save a drowning child because we would prefer not to muddy our shoes. If we can help, we must - and any excuse is hypocrisy.
Peter Singer specialises in applied ethics and approaches ethical issues from a secular, utilitarian perspective - and few people are better placed to advise on what actions we ought to take to lead moral lives.
The book on Google Play:
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About the book:
In 1972, the young philosopher Peter Singer published "Famine, Affluence and Morality," which rapidly became one of the most widely discussed essays in applied ethics. Through this article, Singer presents his view that we have the same moral obligations to those far away as we do to those close to us. He argued that choosing not to send life-saving money to starving people on the other side of the earth is the moral equivalent of neglecting to save drowning children because we prefer not to muddy our shoes. If we can help, we must--and any excuse is hypocrisy. Singer's extreme stand on our moral obligations to others became a powerful call to arms and continues to challenge people's attitudes towards extreme poverty. Today, it remains a central touchstone for those who argue we should all help others more than we do.
As Bill and Melinda Gates observe in their foreword, in the age of today's global philanthropy, Singer's essay is as relevant now as it ever was. This edition collects the original article, two of Singer's more recent popular writings on our obligations to others around the world, and a new introduction by Singer that discusses his current thinking.
About the author
Peter Singer has been described as the world's most influential philosopher. His books include Animal Liberation, Practical Ethics, Rethinking Life and Death, One World, The Life You Can Save, and The Point of View of the Universe. In 2014 the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute ranked him third on its list of Global Thought Leaders, and Time has ranked him among the world's 100 most influential people.
Peter Singer is the Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University, and a Laureate Professor at the Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics at the University of Melbourne.
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